Unit 7: Decolonization and Nationalism

Unit Description:  

Stage 1- Desired Results

Essential Questions

How has nationalism both united and divided countries/regions in Africa & Asia?

How has decolonization impacted societies today?

Enduring Understandings

Students understand that... Nationalist and decolonization movements employed a variety of methods, including nonviolent resistance and armed struggle. Tensions and conflicts often continued after independence as new challenges arose.

Common Core Standards and Performance Indicators:


Unifying Themes:

Social Studies Content Area Standards:

Social Studies Practices (begin on page 3)

Common Core Learning Standards for Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science,and Technical Subjects (begins on page 76)

Knowledge

Students know that...

10.7a Independence movements in India and Indochina developed in response to European control.

10.7b African independence movements gained strength as European states struggled economically after World War II. European efforts to limit African nationalist movements were often unsuccessful.

10.7c Nationalism in the Middle East was often influenced by factors such as religious beliefs and secularism.

10.7d Nationalism in China influenced the removal of the imperial regime, led to numerous conflicts, and resulted in the formation of the communist People’s Republic of China.

Key Terms

Skills

Students will be able to...

Students will explore Gandhi’s nonviolent nationalist movement and nationalist efforts led by the Muslim League aimed at the masses that resulted in a British-partitioned subcontinent.

Students will compare and contrast the ideologies and methodologies of Gandhi and Ho Chi Minh as nationalist leaders.

Students will explore at least two of these three African independence movements: Ghana, Algeria, Kenya.

Students will investigate Zionism, the mandates created at the end of World War I, and Arab nationalism.

Students will examine the creation of the State of Israel and the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Students will trace the Chinese Civil War, including the role of warlords, nationalists, communists, and the world wars that resulted in the division of China into a communist-run People’s Republic of China and a nationalist-run Taiwan.

Students will investigate political, economic, and social policies under Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping and compare and contrast these policies.

Stage 2- Assessment Evidence

Formative Tasks

Introduction to Decolonization:  Contains maps showing colonization around the world during the years 1492, 1660, 1885, 1914, 1959, and 1974. Asks students to analyze the changes and hypothesize reasons for these changes. Concludes with a short reading detailing the causes of these changes.

Close Read: Gandhi’s Letter to the Viceroy: Through a close read of one of his letters, students will contextualize Gandhi’s political views and use claims and evidence.

Maps of India's Partition: three maps showing how India was divided. Contains one question for each map, asks students to hypothesize on reasons and consequences of partition.

Indian Independence Movement:  Students examine a timeline using text, images, and video provided to explain how India gained its independence from Great Britain.

Gandhi & Civil Disobedience:  brief reading activity with related questions that highlight the effectiveness of the policy of civil disobedience (p. 45).  

Zionism and Arab Nationalism: Students will use documents and a short video to  explain the perspectives and motives that European Imperialists, Arab Nationalists, and Zionists had in the future of the Middle East.

Arab-Israeli Conflict: Students will watch short videos, analyze maps and read texts/transcripts to explain the historical roots and continued conflict in Israel-Palestine.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict:  brief reading activity on the differing points of view in the conflict with related questions (p. 83).

Causes of the Chinese Revolution: Uses contextualization and political cartoons to recap Chinese history from prior unit to explain what led to the overthrow of the Qing and the start of the Chinese Civil War.  

Chinese Civil War: Using primary and secondary sources students will answer the questions: "Why did Mao Zedong and the Communists win the Chinese Civil War?"

Chinese Cultural Revolution: students will analyze a poster and connect the Cultural Revolution to the Chinese Revolution (Beyond the Bubble)

Graph comparing the GDP of China from Mao through Deng

"I Think" lesson: The student will be able to explain the conflict between India and Pakistan and identify the roadblocks to peace since independence using charts, graphs, and maps. (p. 44-46)

Mini DBQ: China's One-Child Policy: Was it a Good Idea?: Background essay, Mini-Q with docs and questions that assist in answering the question above.

Informational graph with related questions that highlights the effects modernization has had on several African countries (includes Kenya); p. 1

Video and graphic organizer on the effects of the Four Modernizations in China (p.4-5)

Close reading on Deng Xiaoping and the changes he instituted in his efforts to modernize China (p. 1-2)

Cartoon analysis:  student's must determine the author's point of view regarding Xiaoping's goals for China and its people (p.6-7)


 Stage 3- Related Lessons

Lesson Plans and Content

"I Think" lesson:  The student will able to explain the continuing conflict over Israel by reading a dialogue about the roots of land claims. (p. 54-61)

Lesson:  Students show that they can compare Gandhi’s civil disobedience with Ho Chi Minh’s idea of a violent resistance. Lesson includes: a warm-up, primary source activities, and an exit slip. (Seen at department meeting in a video about using contextualization)

Lesson: Using documents and close reading students will  describe the actions taken by European countries, Arab nationalists, and Zionists during WWI and explain how those actions led to the state of the Middle East after the war. (Includes: the Sykes-Picot Agreement, the Balfour Declaration, and the League of Nations Mandate System)

Mao's Policies: Using primary sources and short videos students will investigate the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution

Compare and contrast the policies of Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping. Includes video and questions on Tiananmen Square.

SHEG India Partition - In this lesson, students weigh the options of leaders in 1947 and use primary sources to evaluate the Partition Plan.

SHEG Congo Independence - This lesson explores the complexities of Congo's situation after independence from Belgium and the international forces that may have played a part in Lumumba's assassination. Students read several primary and secondary source accounts in order to answer the question: Why was Patrice Lumumba assassinated?

SHEG Cultural Revolution - This lesson explores the motivations of Chinese youth in participating in the Cultural Revolution. Through a series of primary documents, students consider what it may have been like to experience this tumultuous period of Chinese history.

Videos, Documents, and Resources

Path to Nationhood: Listing and description of African nations gaining independence (page 84)

Kwame Nkrumah Biography Questions

Frontline's Tank Man (video and teacher resources)

Jomo Kenyatta Biography Questions

Suggestions for Diverse Learners:

Interactive Map:  Vietnam War

Partition of India interactive map